Total adherence to parampara
GOWRI RAMNARAYAN
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Beauty and bhava prevailed in Sanjay's recital while young Amrita was traditional.
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VINTAGE FARE: Sanjay Subramaniam. Photo: R. Shivaji Rao.
Sanjay Subramaniam's respect for parampara manifests itself in his choice of compositions off the popular mainstream, but with weight, beauty and ragabhava. At Raga Sudha the varnam in Surutti, beloved of the Dhanammal School, heralded vintage fare. His penchant for Tamil was seen in Dandapani Desikar's ``Arulvai Angayarkanniye" (Dharmavati) and Vedanayagam Pillai's ``Karunalayanidhiye" (Hindolam). For sheer grandeur you had ``Sri Panchanadisam" (Sahana) and ``Sarasadala Nayana" (Khamas).
The voice was not intractable, though by no means an easy vehicle for his extraordinary manodharama. The brighas he revels in were more suggestive than real. The gamakas came off well, and so did the controlled karvais. What impressed was the imagination in the alapana, picking out the ripe and the riveting, as when he evoked the rich poignancy of Sahana, though the singer was unable to resist showiness in the second half. The kriti restored the mellowness — the sangatis in the pallavi were enough to paint the raga's intricate loveliness. S. Varadarajan's violin underlined it with mellifluousness. The voice became more malleable in Dharmavati. The neraval with the wellchosen line ``Unmai Uyir gunangal" was robust, embellished compellingly by K. Arun Prakash (mridangam).
The best was reserved for Khamas. Shedding its lightness the raga shone in primary colours. With sruti-resonant karvai anchors, the full spate alapana carried you along in self-forgetful currents. ``Sarasadalanayana" set a grand mood. There was nothing showy, no artifice, rakti and rasa ruled.
The post-tani pieces included a Tamil version of ``Entati kuluke" in Kalyani, somewhat confusing as it morphed the cheeky sringaram of the original into bhakti. The viruttham launched in Varali lingered in the mind.
Her preference is for the unhurried and the traditional. Why else would Amruta Venkatesh choose to do her alapanas in rakti ragas, with mellow kritis? Ritigowla (``Ninnu Vina") stood out for its unmistakable identity and gamaka focus. Varali (``Eti Janma") had a definite form but could have done with more soul. Khambodi had a large canvas and a clear grasp of the raga. ``Sri Subrahmanyaya Namaste" made a strong statement about the singer's attitude. Another plus point was the invariable use of open mouthed akaram in every sthayi. ``Gopanandana" (Bhooshavali) and ``Sevikka Vendumayya" (Andolika) proved that Amruta could handle madhyama kala kritis well and offer variety. Her pathantara was unwaveringly classical.
But the lack of voice culture was a drawback. Her vocalisation remained uneven and the modulation seemed indiscriminate. The lack of volume control weakened the gamakas. Feebleness in the lower register was obvious in her Kambhodi. The absence of the real tambura was a major disadvantage. The involvement of the singer in her music made these drawbacks appear as limitations to be overcome rather than flaws.
Padma Shankar (violin) was competent and young Arjun Ganesh (mridangam) showed more than promise.
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